Sheet-metal window panel and method of making the same



July 7, 1925. 1,545,021 G. w. WELLS SHEET METAL WINDOW PANEL AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed March 18, 1925 jivuerz ion Patented July 7, 1925.

UNITED STATES GEORGE W. WELLS, OF AMESBUBY, MASSACHUSETTS.

SHEET-METAL WINDOW PANEL AND METHOD OI MAKING THE sum.

Application filed Karen 18, 1925. Serial 1T0. 18,545.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that Gnonon W. WELLS, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Amesbury, in the county of Essex and State 1 of Massachusetts, has invented, an Improvement in Sheet-Metal Window Panels and Methods of Making the Same, of which the following is a specification.

In closed automobile bodies, in the construction of which sheet metal is largely employed, it is customary to provide a sheet metal face plate, or panel, for the window openings, which are'provid'ed with an integrally formed flange which extends continuously about the opening and projects therein, this flange being formed by bending the edge portion of the metal about an opening in the plate at right angles to the plate, and, as these openings usually have square corners, the flange must have corresponding square corners. In the formation of this right angularly projecting flange, from the edge portion of a rectangularly shaped opening, the metal at the corners of the opening must either be drawn or flattened outby a hammering, or similar process, to provide for the increased area of metal necessary to form the corners in the flange, or the metal must be cut and an an llar gusset piece inserted, and welded to nil. plate. The first of these methods is objectionable, as it weakens the metal and often causes the formation of cracks therein and the second is also objectionable because of the difficulty and expense of ,making and finishing the joint with the gusset and the liability that the joint may be imperfectly welded and the imperfection not discovered until it is difficult, or too late to repair it, imperfections in the welded joint and the difficulty of making it being partly due to the fact that the gusset is liable not to fit closely into the notch which is opened up by the bending of the edge portion to form the flange.

The objects of my invention are to provide an improved method of forming the ri ht angularly shaped inturned flange, so t at the welded joint may be more readily formed and will be more uniformly nearly perfect than with previous methods, and to provide a construction which is ready'for the bending operation, to form the projecting flange, which will; not require further work after the bending operation has been performed.

I accomplish these objects in the manner hereinafter described and as illustrated in the accompanying. drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is a side view of a complete sheet metal window frame section, showing a prehminary step in my process.

Fig. 2 is a detail new of a single corner portion thereof on a larger scale.

Figs. 3 and 4 are respectively, detail views of a gusset blank, which I em loy, before and after it has been die shaped? V Fig. 5 is a detail side view of a corner portion after the gusset has been secured in position and before thebending operation is performed.

Fig. 6 is an edge view of the formation shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view at line 5-5 of Fig. 5.

ig. 8 is a perspective view of a finished corner portio As diown in the drawin a rectangular shaped piece of sheet meta a is provided which is of proper dimensions for the purpose and in which a rectangularly shaped opening I), is formed, the dimensions of which arev in proportion to, the dimensions of the window opening which the plate is designed' to enclose, being of less length and width by twice the width of the flange which is to extend into the opening and enclose the same.

According to my invention, at the time the opening b is formed in the face plate a, a slot or recess a is formed therein, at each corner, by cutting away the metal diagonally of the corner from the opening to the score lines (1, which are preferably formed in the plate to facilitate accurate bending along the lines which the metal is to be bent to form the flanges. The side edges of each slot 0 areparallel to, and equidistant from the extension of the bisector of the-angle of the edges forming the corner, and the inner end of the slot is semi-circular and tangential to the score lines. The exact width of the slot is not material, but is preferably approximately of the width shown. I further provide for each corner a gusset'e of the same kind of material as that of which the plate a is formed, each gusset being formed from a sheet metal blank of the triof the blank is slightly rounded, correspond ing to the curvature of the inner end of the slot 0 and, as shown in Fig. 4, the blank is bent double on a line extending from the rounded vertex to the middle of'the opposite side, thereby providing two parallel side portions 0 and a connecting semi-cylindrical portion e The edges of the side portions which extend from the rounded vertex are bent outward to form a flange 6 which extends from one side portion to the other about the rounded intermediate portion e and at right angles to the side portions (2 so that the entire flange is disposed in the same plane surface. The edge of the flange e is made to conform exactly to the edge of the slot 0, so that the gusset may be set into the slot 0 and, when in this position the surfaces of the plate and flange will be continuous and the end edges of the flange will be continuous with the edges'of the ad- 'acent portions of the plate, asshown in ig. 5. The abutting edges of the flange and edges of the slot 0, in which the gusset is placed, are then welded together in a well knowntmanner, and, in performing this op-' 'eration, the main plate may be laid on a flat surface face side down, so that the under side of the flange a will rest on the same surface and be prevented from being displaced while the welding operation is performed. The surfaces adiacent the joint thus formed may then be readily cleaned and made smooth andcontinuous with the adjacent surfaces of the plate, and, as the joint is readily accessible, this finishing operation may then be readily performed. The plate is then ready for the final operation of forming the flange, which will be formed by dies in the usual manner. That is, the plate will usually be turned over so that the gusset depends therefrom and then the edge portion of the plate will be bent downward at the score lines into a position at right angles thereto, thereby causing the Y gusset to be-spread'open, so that the middle line of its rounded portion will form the apex of the corner of the flange and the sides thereof will form the flange portions adjacent thereto, as shown in Fig. 8, and will furnish the extra area of metal necessary to perform this operation without I drawing the metal. By this operation the right angular bend between the sides 6 and flange 0 will be flattened, so that these portions will form a continuous flat surface. Only a small portion of the bending action on the gusset takes place at the welded joint, so that no undue strain is placed thereon, although if the welding operation has been performed imperfectly to a serious extent, the bending operation will usually disclose this fact, so that the joint may be repaired before it is too late to cause serious inconvenience.

I claim;

1. A sheet metal ing an opening and adapted to be bent to form a perpendicularly disposed corner flange for extending into the opening, the edges of the plate opening being disposed at an angle corresponding to the corner angle and said plate having a slot leading from the vertex of theangle of said edges in the direction of the bisector of said angle, and a triangularly shaped sheet metal gusset set into said slot, said gusset being bent double on a line extending from one of its vertices to the middle of its opposite edge and having a continuously extending flange turned outward from the edge portions extending from said vertex, the edges of said flange being fitted to the edges of the slot and permanently connected thereto with the surfaces of the flange extending continuously with the surfaces of the plate.

2. A sheet metal face plate for enclosing an opening and adapted to be bent to form a perpendicularly disposed convex flange to extend into the opening, the edges of the plate opening being disposed at an angle corresponding to the corner angle and said plate havin a portion cut therefrom to form a slot leading from the vertex of the angle of said edges and having its side edges at opposite sides of, and equidistant from the line of the bisector of the angle, and a triangularly shaped sheet metal gusset set into said slot,-said gusset being bent double on a line extending from one of its face plate for enclos- I vertices to the middle of the opposite edge and having an out-turned flange formed from one edge portion of each doubled portion, the edges of which are fitted to the edges of said slot and welded thereto, so that the surfaces of the plate and flanges are continuous.

3. A sheet metal face plate for enclosing an opening and adapted to be bent to form a perpendicularly'disposed convex flange to extend into the opening, the edges of the plate opening being disposed at an angle corresponding to the corner angle and said plate having a portion cut therefrom to form a slot leading from the vertex of the angle of said edges and having its side edges at opposite sides of, and equidistant from the line of the bisector of the angle, and a triangularly shaped sheet metal gusset set into said slot, said gusset being bent double on a line extending from one of its vertices' o ingly 4. The method of forming a corner flange integrally with a sheet metal face plate adapted to enclose an opening and to have the flange extend into said opening, which consists in cutting out the material of the plate to form an opening of correspondless dimension than the opening to be enclosed by the width of the flange, cutting out the material of the plate to form a slot which extends from the opening in the direction of the bisector of the angle of the cora sheet metal, triangularly shaped gusset which is bent double on a line extending from a vertex to the middle of the opposite edge and has a continuously extending flange bent outward from the ner, providing edge portions which extend from said vertex, fitting the edges of the gusset flange to the edges of the slot and Welding them together, so that the surfaces of the flange and plate extend continuously and the doubled portion of the gusset is at the back side of the plate, and then bending the edge portion of the plate about the opening toward the back side into a right angular position and at the same time unfolding the gusset, bending its flange flat with its adjacent portion and shaping it into angular form to form the In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification.

GEORGE WELLS.

corner of the plate flange. 

